Araluen
Araluen was an island nation. Geography Araluen was located on an island off the coast of the major eastern continent. To the north was the land of Picta, home of the wild Scotti tribes. In the southwest corner was the country of Celtica, an ally of Araluen. East of Celtica and south of Araluen was the plateau known as the Mountains of Rain and Night. Hibernia was an island west of Araluen. To the east of Araluen was the Narrow Sea, and to the south and west was the Endless Ocean. Many other countries such as Arrida, Gallica, Teutlandt, and Alpina were situated across the Narrow Sea. History Around 490 C.E., Araluen was established by King Herbert after he drove the Scotti out of Araluen and back into Picta. He organized the country into 50 fiefs, each one ruled by a baron. Herbert also established the Ranger Corps as the kingdom's intelligence force and assigned a Ranger to each fief. In 627 C.E., Morgarath attempted to overthrow King Oswald, employing the help of the Kalkara. He was defeated and driven into the Mountains of Rain and Night, where he remained until 643 C.E.. He was killed after his second attempted take over failed. In 645 C.E., the country signed a peace treaty with Skandia, bringing about a new age of peace between the two countries. In 674 C.E., another coup was attempted, this time against King Duncan and then-regent Cassandra. By 1896 C.E., Araluen had been renamed The Republic of Aralan States and Redmont Fief had been renamed Redman County. Government Araluen was ruled by a Monarch, with each baron reporting directly to them. There was one baron ruling each of the fifty fiefs, with the possible exception of Gorlan fief after the First Civil War. However, Gorlan fief still had people living in it and was under the rule of the two neighboring fiefs. Each fief was assigned one Ranger, who would report the abilities and competence of the Baron and craftmasters to the Monarch. Though they generally didn't make a point of it, Rangers technically outranked everyone except the ruling monarch or their representative. Additionally, each fief had their own craftmasters, who would train apprentices in their specific craft. With the exception of Rangers, craftmasters were to think of the baron of the fief they live in as their boss. All fiefs had a battlemaster, who was in charge of training new knights, and a kitchenmaster, who was the cook for the fief’s main castle. Laws When passing judgement in court, a minimum of six people are required to be present to see justice dispensed. For normal citizens, publicly slandering the ruling monarch was considered a serious offense; for sworn officials, such as Rangers, it was considered treason. There are only two punishments for treason: banishment or death. Although lifelong banishment is traditional, there were cases in which a temporary banishment was given instead. Drunkenness was also known to have legal ramifications, though it is unclear what qualifies as drunkenness. Destroying the credentials of a diplomat is a crime that warrants jail time. It was illegal to sell another person into slavery. Any village with a population of more than one hundred was required to train its young men as archers. The mail was a service controlled by the Crown. As such, there were dire penalties for interfering with it. The knights of the realm were entrusted with the protection of the Royal Mail. Opening a sealed dispatch was also a criminal offense. Sometime after Cassandra was born, King Duncan changed the laws of succession to allow a female heir to succeed to the throne. Currency In Araluen, the forms of currency were gold, silver, and copper. They were referred to, respectively, as a gold royal, a silver crown, and a copper pennig. They were rarely discussed, so little is known about them and their individual value. However, it was mentioned that ten copper pennigs were equal to one silver crown. Silver one-royal coins and gold three-royal coins were known to exist as well; they may be a silver crown and a gold royal respectively. For international affairs, reels of silver were used. Politics Araluen was generally a peaceful and respected country, with several treaties in place. Notable treaties were with Celtica, Skandia, and Picta. However, despite the treaty, Araluen was known to have ongoing conflicts with some Scotti tribes. Even among countries that they didn't have treaties with, such as Toscana and Arrida, Araluen was highly trusted. As such a highly trusted country, they have sent Rangers and diplomats to other countries to aid in justice and peacemaking. Military In times of war, Araluen could call on the skill of its warrior knights, trained in the Battleschools attached to the various fiefs. Most knights were trained in Battleshools from fifteen years of age. The training was vigorous and highly disciplined, though in some fiefs it could become slack. As such, it was the responsibility of the Rangers to keep tabs on them, to assess their battle readiness and level of skill and training. This was one of the reasons why it is so important for Rangers to be independent from the barons and report only to the king. However, the bulk of the army was made up of soldiers, generally farmers who weren't especially skilled in fighting, and were only called upon during times of war. Some soldiers were put into Archer Units, made up of an archer and a spearman, each protecting the other. The Royal Scouts were responsible for training archers and scouting ahead of the army. The Ranger Corps, made up of fifty highly trained Rangers, skilled in archery, camouflage, and unseen movement, could also be called upon for service, although their skills were less suited for open combat and more for gathering information and going on missions separate from the main army. References }} pl:Araluen Category:Countries